SAT II Physics : Capacitors

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for SAT II Physics

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Example Questions

Example Question #1 : Capacitors

A capacitor with capacitance  is constructed by putting a thin piece of cardboard between two copper plates, then each plate is connected to a battery. If the copper plates are cut in half then what is the effect on the capacitance of the circuit?

Possible Answers:

Correct answer:

Explanation:

Capacitance of a circuit is defined by the equation:

Where  is the capacitance,  is a constant of nature,  is the area of the capacitor, and  is the distance between the two plates

Since the metal plates are cut in half, the area is halved. We can substitute  in for 

The result is that the capacitance is half the original quantity.

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